My Christmas Angel
by Ellivia22
Summary: set after "Arnold's Christmas". The day after Christmas Arnold goes to Mr. Bailey's office to thank him for finding Mai. How will Arnold react when he finds out who was really behind Mr. Hyunh's Christmas miracle? Arnold/Helga. ONESHOT. Please review, thanks.


A/N: Merry Christmas one and all! I've had this story in my mind for years and I never got around to writing it. It's based on one of my favorite episodes ever. Anyway here's my first ever Hey Arnold story. I really hope you like it. Please review, thanks :)

Disclaimer: If I owned Hey Arnold there would've been a Jungle Movie. I'm so disappointed that it never happened :(

** My Christmas Angel**

** By: Ellivia22**

** Arnold**

I trudge down the stairs, my hands shoved deep in my pockets. It's Christmas Day. Instead of feeling the holiday spirit, I feel utterly defeated. I did everything I possibly could to find Nancy Spumoni boots for Mr. Bailey. Then Mr. Bailey would find Mai and Mr. Hyunh would have the best Christmas ever. I failed.

When I reach the bottom of the stairs I hear happy voices coming from the living room. My chest tightens. How am I going to explain to Mr. Hyunh that I was unable to find his daughter-that I got him nothing for Christmas? This is going to be unbearable. I enter the living room to Grandma playing "Aud Lang Syne" wearing a sash that says "Happy New Year." Once again, she is confused on which holiday it is.

"Merry Christmas, Shortman!" Grandpa says cheerfully, slapping me on the back.

"Merry Christmas," I mumble. I walk past Ernie and Mr. Kokashka who are by the decorated Christmas tree, fighting over whose gift is going to open first. I swear I'm the sanest person in this room. I sit in a vacant chair. I glance at Mr. Hyunh.

He is smoking a pipe and staring at the roaring fireplace. I feel even worse seeing the despondent look on his face. His Christmas is ruined and it's all my fault. I focus on my hands. I'm too ashamed to look at him.

"And this is for you, Shortman," Grandpa says, placing a medium sized package wrapped in red and green paper in my lap. "Lucky for you, I was your Secret Santa."

Absently I tear open the package, my thoughts still on Mr. Hyunh. Inside the box is a really nice pair of ice skates. They are blue with a white snowflake at the toe. They are the best gift a kid could receive. Looking at the skates make me think of the Nancy Spumoni snow boots. I briefly glance at Mr. Hyunh again. I don't deserve this gift.

I notice Grandpa watching me closely. I force a huge grin on my face, place the box of the floor, and hug him tightly. "Thanks Grandpa! I love them."

Grandpa ruffles my hair. "You're welcome." Then he starts sorting out the other gifts that are under the tree. I resume looking at my hands. I wish with all my heart that this day would just end. I see Gerald coming towards me. "Merry Christmas, Arnold."

"Merry Christmas, Gerald," I mumble. We watch as Mr. Kokashka opens his present. I can't stop thinking about Mr. Hyunh.

"Well I guess that's everyone," Grandpa says. "Merry Christmas!"

"Woah, Woah, wait a minute," Ernie says, gripping on his new hammer. "What about Mr. Hyunh? He didn't get a present!"

My head lowers even more, if that's possible. The tightness in my chest gets worse. It takes all that I have to keep the tears back. "Hey that's right," Grandpa says. He starts searching under the empty Christmas tree. "There should be a present for Mr. Hyunh somewhere. That's funny. There's nothing here for Mr. Hyunh."

"It's all right," Mr. Hyunh says, speaking for the first time. He sounds slightly agitated. "I don't need a present. It's nothing!"

I can't stand this any longer. I need to get this over with. I stand up unsteadily. "Wait. I have something to tell you."

**DING DONG!**

"Ooh, who could that be," Grandpa says in annoyance. "I'm coming. I'm coming. Lousy Yuletide pranksters!" Grandpa says, leaving the room.

I look at Mr. Hyunh who resumes staring at the fireplace I search for the right words to say to him. A minute later Grandpa comes back into the living room with a pretty girl with long dark hair and tanned skin. She looks like she's in her late teens, possibly early twenties. I stare at her in shock. She couldn't possibly be...

"Hi," the girl says softly. Mr. Hyunh turns sharply. He stares at the girl like the rest of us are. I notice how much the girl looks just like him. "Father?"

"Mai?" Mr. Hyunh says in disbelief. I watch in shock as he walks over and hugs the young woman tightly. "Can't believe it. Mai, is it really you?"

"Look at you." He pulls away from his daughter. "Everyone, this is Mai, my daughter."

"Hello everyone," the girl says.

Instantly all the horrible feelings inside evaporate. I feel positively elated. I don't know how it happened, but Mr. Hyunh got his Christmas miracle. I look at the older man. "Merry, Christmas, Mr. Hyunh."

Mr. Hyunh starts talking to his daughter in Vietnamese. "Well, I guess Mr. Hyunh got his present after all," Grandpa said. "I thought she was a Yuletide prankster," I hear him tell Grandma.

"I guess miracles can happen after all," Gerald says, beside me.

"Yeah, but how did it happen, Gerald?" I ask in confusion. Mr. Bailey was pretty set and clear that he wasn't going to look for Mai. What made him change his mind? "I mean, it doesn't make sense."

"Don't try to make sense out of it, Arnold. A miracle is a miracle and that's all there is to it. Maybe you've got a Christmas angel looking out for you or something."

I find that hard to believe. It's pretty obvious that Mr. Bailey must've had a change in heart and decided to help me out somehow. "Christmas Angel. Yeah, maybe." Together Gerald and I watch as Mr. Hyunh and his daughter continue to talk in Vietnamese. He looks like he had just won a million dollars.

I smile broadly. This has turned from the worst Christmas to the best. I've never felt happier. I can't wait to visit Mr. Bailey tomorrow at the Office of Information and thank him for the miracle that he made.

...

The next afternoon I knock on Mr. Bailey's office door. Yesterday was so great that I have yet to stop smiling. I can't wait to thank Mr. Bailey for the miracle that he made.

"Come in," a gruff voice answers.

I open the door. When Mr. Bailey sees me, he looks completely exasperated. "What do you want now, kid? I found your Mai Hyunh."

"I know. I just wanted to thank you for everything. You really made it the best Christmas ever. Thank you."

"I'm not the one you should be thanking."

I'm confused. "But you found Mai."

"Yeah, but it was your little friend who convinced me to stay up all night looking for her."

"Who, Gerald?"

Mr. Bailey shakes his head, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Some girl. She's blonde with pigtails and a pink bow."

I stare at him. Blonde hair? Pigtails? A Pink bow? He couldn't possibly mean... "H-Helga?"

He shrugs. "She never told me her name. But she was desperate to help you. She gave me her own pair of Nancy Spumoni snow boots. She really cares about you."

I continue to look at Mr. Bailey in disbelief. Helga G. Pataki, helping me? That's just as believable as Rhonda wearing clothes that clash. It's just not possible. I mean, after all, Helga hates me. "You must be mistaken. Helga wouldn't help me. She hates me."

"Look, I've got too much to do. The point is, some girl wearing all pink convinced me to look for your Mai so that you could have a Christmas miracle. I suggest you talk to her. Good day!"

I don't leave right away. Slowly I start to smile. I now understand why I kept running into Helga on Christmas Eve. This explains her leading questions. My smile grows bigger. I always knew that she was kind on the inside. Gerald was right. I do have a Christmas angel. And it is her. I know exactly where to go next.

"Thanks again, Mr. Bailey. Bye!" I rush out of his office.

**Helga**

"Baby sister! Come help me make lunch for Mommy and Daddy!"

I roll my eyes to the ceiling. The last thing I want to do is spend alone time with my perfect older sister. All she wants is to spend 'quality time' with me. I groan. I know that if I refuse then I'll get in trouble. Maybe if I just do this with her, she and the rest of the family will leave me alone for the rest of the day. "Coming Ooolga!"

I enter the kitchen. Olga is by the counter, cutting up tomatoes. "Grab the bread. We're going to make my famous roast beef sandwich. All the boys at school love them."

I silently follow my sister's instructions. My mind is on Arnold, like always. I wonder what he's doing right now. I smile to myself just thinking about how happy my sacrifice has made him. Giving up my brand new Nancy Spumoni snow boots was totally worth it.

"So Helga," Olga says, grabbing the lettuce out of the fridge. "How's school going?"

"Fine," I mutter. I wish she would just shut up so I can continue thinking about Arnold.

"Any special boy caught your eye yet?"

I drop the knife that I was using to slice up the roast. My heart is pounding hard against my chest. By the way Olga is looking at me I have a feeling that she knows something. "W-what?! Of course not! All the boys at school are utter losers. Especially the one with the football shaped head." I cringe on the inside. I never should have brought up Arnold.

"Hmmm a football shaped head. That must be the boy Mommy and I saw you following at the store the other day."

I feel my stomach drop. This conversation keeps getting worse. I'm thankfully spared answering by the shrill sound of the doorbell. I sigh in relief. It's probably one of Olga's many boyfriends. I'm saved.

"Helga," my father's voice booms. "Your little friend Alfred is here."

"Arnold?!" I gasp in shock. What in the world is he doing here? Isn't he supposed to be hanging out with Mr. Hyunh and his daughter? I eagerly leave the kitchen to see my beloved.

Sure enough Arnold is standing in the middle of the hall, taking off his gloves. Snow is in his golden hair, making him look cuter than ever. I feel my heart pound wildly in my chest, I place my hands on my hips. "What do you want, Football Head?"

For once he doesn't flinch by my usual insult. "Not much. Just wanted to ask how your Christmas was."

"Not that it's any of your business, but it was fine." I struggle to say something nice. "Yours?"

Arnold's smile gets bigger if that's possible. "It was incredible. And I know that you know why."

His comment catches me off guard. Does he know that I gave up my Nancy Spumoni boots for him? He can't know. Mr. Bailey swore to secrecy. "I-I don't know what you're talking about."

Arnold takes a step closer to me. My palms start to sweat. "Why did you do it, Helga? Why did you help me out?"

I struggle to keep up my bully attitude. It isn't easy. Arnold is looking at as if he is seeing me in a new light. I have the strong desire to throw my arms around my beloved and kiss him. _Tell him,_ a voice whispers in my head. _Tell him how you feel at last._ I cross my arms. "Because I didn't want to have to listen to you whine about how your precious plan didn't work out. I did it to spare everyone else, really."

I can tell he doesn't buy my explanation. "Come on. What's the real reason?"

I glance around the hall. We're alone. That means i can show Arnold a little bit of my softer side. I avoid looking at his beautiful jade eyes. "I did it because I lo-I mean because I wanted to show you that I'm not as bad as I seem to be."

"Thank you, Helga. Thank you for everything. You have no idea how much this means to me."

I give Arnold a rare smile. "You're welcome A-arnold."

Before I can react, Arnold throws his arms around me in a tight hug. His embrace is warm. _Oh my God! Arnold is actually hugging me! I think I'm going to die! _After a moment, I push him away. "You already thanked me. You don't need to get all mushy on me."

He looks at me sheepishly. "Sorry."

A long silence passes between us. Both of us are looking at the floor, unsure of what to say next. Then the silence is broken by Olga's high pitched voice. "Ooh! It looks like my baby sister is under the mistletoe with a boy. You know what this means!"

Arnold and I look up. Sure enough the green plant is hanging from the chandelier Who was the fool responsible for this? It takes all the strength I have to force my growing smile into a scowl. "No way, Olga! I'm not kissing the Football Head!"

"But it's tradition," Olga whines. I glare daggers at my older sister. How dare she embarrass me in front of Arnold!

"Oh come on, Helga," Arnold says. I look back at him. He has an expression on his face that I've never seen before. Does he actually want to kiss me, too? Could this possibly be happening? "How can you argue with tradition?"

_Oh my orzo shaped Prometheus. How I've longed for this day!_ "Well..." I say slowly. "Fine! Let's just get this over with quick!"

Slowly Arnold takes my face in his soft hands. My heart is pounding so hard in my chest I bet he can hear the beats. I close my eyes and wait for his lips to meet mine in our first kiss.

As soon as his lips touch mine I feel the world around me disappear. His lips are so soft and perfect that it sends shivers down my spine. Kissing Arnold is better in real life than in any dream I've ever had. A tear slides down my cheek. I've never been so happy in my entire life. For once I'm glad that Olga is my sister.

Before I can stop myself I pull Arnold closer and kiss him back with all the passion I've been holding back all these years. If this is the only time I'll get to kiss him, I'm going to enjoy it.

Arnold pulls away a few seconds later. My breathing is uneven. My lips ache to kiss him again. I don't want to push my luck though. He looks deeply into my blue eyes. "Merry Christmas, Helga. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Merry Christmas," I whisper back.

I watch as Arnold puts on his gloves, then leave the house. Once he is out of sight and I'm alone again in the hall, I let out a breathless sigh. Then I hit the ground. This is definitely the best Christmas ever.

**The End**


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